May Queen Episode 16 Recap

It feels like the past several episodes were all building to this and now the plot is really going to push forward…or not. Who knows what the writers will do to destroy it as writers are good at destroying decent dramas. I must say that Hae Joo’s and Chang Hee’s and In Hwa’s personalities have been grating on me with every episode, but boy was I really annoyed with all three. Talk about irrational creatures. Well..humans are not known for their rationality, but they take irrationality and stupidity to new levels.

So we start May Queen episode 16 off with Chang Hee at Jang’s office. Needless to say, Chang Hee cannot believe his father would murder anyone, let alone Hae Joo’s father. Even with the license plate, picture, and the secretary’s confession (how can no one change looks in 15 years?), Chang Hee is unwilling to believe. It’s not until he hears his father’s taped confession that he starts believing that Jang is telling the truth. However, Chang Hee must know WHY his father killed Hae Joo’s. Jang refuses to answer that and says it’s a prosecutor’s job to handle getting the information. If Chang Hee wants to know so badly, he should go ask his father himself. Chang Hee leaves Jang’s office completely shell shocked as what he remembers from 15 years ago clicks with all that his father has done recently.

Meanwhile, Geum Hee sits down with Hae Joo and has the stupidest and weirdest conversation ever. Geum Hee tells Hae Joo about Yoo Jin and their matching scars. She then talks about how she visited Dal Soon to ask if Hae Joo was adopted or not. This is all news to Hae Joo since Dal Soon kept the visit a secret from her. Geum Hee says it has already been confirmed that Hae Joo isn’t her daughter, but she feels really close to her as if she really were. Omo. This woman. This woman annoys me so much. WHY is she even bringing this up to Hae Joo? What can come of it?

Hae Joo then leaves and goes to find In Hwa who is furious over what happened with San. Before Hae Joo can finish her question about what happened with San oppa, In Hwa slaps her across the face. When she goes to do it a second time, Hae Joo catches her arm. Now just what is In Hwa doing? In Hwa, being In Hwa, takes out the anger that should be more directed towards San out on Hae Joo. She claims that its all Hae Joo’s fault that San refuses to be with In Hwa. Oh she calls Hae Joo a two-timer and someone who tempts and uses San. Well…in all fairness Hae Joo did tell San that she only thinks of him as a brother and has eyes only for Chang Hee. On the other hand, since Hae Joo is aware of San’s unchanging feelings, should she depend on him as much? It’s a fine line, but since I don’t think Hae Joo is using San’s feelings (while pretending not to know they exist), I don’t think she deserved any of In Hwa’s misguided wrath.

In Hwa rushes home bawling and when Geum Hee asks what the matter is, In Hwa can only spit out San’s name. Geum Hee knows that her daughter has been rejected and decides to go talk to San herself. My thinking her is what happens to Geum Hee’s good feelings about Hae Joo if she learns that Hae Joo is the cause of In Hwa’s misery over San?

We then cut to the lifeless Chang Hee who after sitting stonily awhile asks what happened. Gi Chul lies that Hong Chul was an evil man hounding him for money. He even goes as far as saying that Hong Chul was the one who shot him in the army out of sheer dislike, plus, Hong Chul threatened Chang Hee’s life. Chang Hee shouts that he cannot believe his father anymore at all. He also cannot believe that a man as good to Hae Joo as Hong Chul was could be a demon and Gi Chul points out that Chang Hee would never have thought of Gi Chul as that way, but look at him. Wow. Well, it does prove a point, too bad its not true. Chang Hee goes into his room where he ignores a call from Jung Woo and smashes his phone on the ground. Yeah, because that will solve your problem. Jung Woo is upset as Chang Hee went off with Jang and now they’ve both disappeared. They only have two days to get the warrant—what is Chang Hee up to?

Hae Joo then goes home and asks Dal Soon why she lied about meeting Geum Hee. Dal Soon is reluctant to talk about the matter until Hae Joo states that Geum Hee has already realized that Hae Joo cannot be her daughter. It’s not that Dal Soon wishes to keep Hae Joo in a rotten life by claiming that even though Hae Joo isn’t her real daughter, Dal Soon claims Hae Joo as hers. The problem is Dal Soon just doesn’t know what the truth is and is reluctant to say anything in haste (though I think she almost mentioned Geum Hee at the picnic). Hae Joo then broaches the subject of her birth mother which irks Dal Soon as didn’t Hae Joo claim that Dal Soon is her one and only mother? I can’t blame Dal Soon here. She gave Hae Joo the opportunity and Hae Joo rejected it. So why now? Hae Joo is so wishy washy it isn’t even funny.

Geum Hee pays San a visit and asks about if it is really impossible for him and In Hwa. San states that he has tried, but he doesn’t want to be unfair to In Hwa. Geum Hee says that love can come with time, but San reiterates that he can’t see In Hwa as a woman—he’s sees her more as a little sister. Geum Hee asks if this is because of whose daughter In Hwa is. San admits that he likes Geum Hee (why?) and In Hwa, but can’t put up with Jang or Il Moon. Geum Hee does understand this and won’t force him to try to be in an uncomfortable situation with a woman he doesn’t love. She does tell him, however, that he’s a lot colder than expected and San apologizes for that. When she mentions his parents as she’s leaving, San is all ears. She tells him what little she knows (his father was studying shipbuilding in Japan—suspicious). San asks to know the name of the man in Japan who knew is father and Geum Hee, after a brief moment of lingering anguish, collects herself to say it was Yoon Hak Soo.The plot is getting more and more twisted for San now, but he’s good at puzzles. He’ll figure it out.

San then rushes to his grandfather to learn more about what happened with his family. Kang reluctantly admits that he was against San’s parents’ marriage as he didn’t want his son to marry a welder (funny considering Kang started as a humble welder). Kang then says that he knows San likes Hae Joo who is also a welder. This surprises San—how did his grandfather know? Kang states he isn’t blind and asks San if he would marry Hae Joo against his wishes like San’s father did with San’s mother. San shouts to the sky that his father is awesome and he wishes to know his secret—how to win a welder’s heart. San then tells his grandfather there is no worry there as the girl doesn’t return his affections.

Il Moon then seeks out Young Joo (who is wearing the designer clothes she bought with his stolen money). He tells her to get in his car and Young Joo’s feistiness pops out. She will not be called like a dog. This gets Il Moon to open the door and ask her nicely to get in. He then takes her for a fancy dinner and hands over the bag she got caught trying to buy with his stolen money. He told her he could have bought it for her if only she had asked. He then asks if they shouldn’t date for real? Omo. This would actually be cute if you knew it didn’t have something to do with Hae Joo and Geum Hee. Young Joo is horrified. She tells him she only wen to the hotel room and stole his money because he treated her like a prostitute bar maid. She also calls him ahjussi. He’s 31 and she’s only 20—he’s too old for her. LOL. She even insults his looks and brains. Wow. I’m loving this side of Young Joo. She claimed she’s sell herself for money and a good position, but that seems to be just posturing in front of her family as you can really see her high self-respect with her actions towards Il Moon. She then walks out on him sans purse and he chases after her. When she shouts pervert and people gather, Il Moon can only let her go. Young Joo smiles and sticks out her tongue before walking away. You go girl!

At the Chun home, Dal Soon is trying to figure out why Hae Joo isn’t Geum Hee’s daughter. The reason being Hae Joo’s outfit and baby picture that Geum Hee had. With all that proof, how can it be that Hae Joo’s blood type isn’t right? Good question. Good question. Before Dal Soon can think on it more, Hae Joo comes out and orders her to go in to rest while Hae Joo finishes up the dishes. Dal Soon refuses and the mother and daughter start a splashing war that ends with Dal Soon turning a house on her daughter. I can just see Hong Chul smiling down from heaven seeing how well Dal Soon is treating Hae Joo now. This touching scene is witnessed by silent lurker Chang Hee who then numbly walks to a cliff overlooking the sea and falls to his knees yelling in anguish. This scene…it’s believable and yet at the same time, I think Jae Hee could have reached a tad deeper to make it a slightly more believable, but it still wasn’t bad.

The next day Jung Woo confronts Chang Hee and is shocked to learn that Chang Hee let Jang go. Didn’t Jung Woo say he would protect Chang Hee from the pressure of the top brass? How could Chang Hee cave like that? Jung Woo then gets it—Jang bought Chang Hee, didn’t he? This earns him a good punch (which at this point Chang Hee deserves). Chang Hee further shocks Jung Woo by handing in his resignation. At least Chang Hee knows given what he did to protect his father, he can’t be a prosecutor any more. Props to Jung Woo for not giving up. Although, if the case is dismissed…can he still get Jang for all of those crimes—especially since Chang Hee had all the documents released? I wonder…

<<PAUSE>>

Now. Why did I say Chang Hee deserves that punch? Because he’s being an idiot. One, I don’t think Jang could actually use the license plate to have Gi Chul arrested. Why? Because if I’m not mistaken (and I can totally be mistaken you know), the statute of limitations is 15 years. I think in this case, it wouldn’t be 15 years since the day of the accident, but since Hong Chul’s death. Which, if the mob guy couldn’t be arrested for what he did to Hae Joo as the statute had passed—the same goes for Gi Chul. Two, Chang Hee was all rready to basically abandon his father. After learning what his father had done (even if it was to supposedly save Chang Hee), the boy should have just kept his distance and kept to his guns with Jang. No matter what Chang Hee says, this was HIS decision. And for a smart person, he chose something really dumb. Although, I suppose he made this decision thinking that because of his father’s sins he can’t have Hae Joo which in turn means his life is worthless, but again, that was his decision.

<<END PAUSE>>

So Lifeless Zombie (aka Chang Hee) goes and tells Jang its all over. This makes the older man very happy. Lifeless Zombie then says he will take his father and disappear from the Jang family’s lives. Jang won’t hear of this. To make amends for all the trouble they’ve caused, the Park family must stay and serve the Jang family until they die. WTF. Now…is there really any reason for Mr. Lifeless Zombie to listen? I mean this scene was seriously a joke and over the top in its absurdity. Again, this is a decision that Chang Hee makes for himself as he opened himself up to this hell by letting Jang go and agreeing to cover up his father’s sins (albeit only the watered down one he actually knows about). In Can You Hear My Heart, even when Maru oppa turned bad, I held this belief that he was just childishly lashing out (in a very bad way) and that he would come to his senses in the end and he did. I felt for him and was so sad to see him try to be evil. I’m not sure I can feel that way for Chang Hee as it seems he has completely given up at this point.

Chang Hee leaves Jang’s office and quickly avoids Hae Joo who is coming in to work. Way to go because avoidance always solves problems…crickets chirping…I really wonder how this will all play out since Jang is getting Chang Hee a job at the company. Anywho, Hae Joo is called into Il Moon’s office where he’s acting all gracious and nice. Gag me. It’s just too disturbing when he gets that way. Of course, Hae Joo, for whatever reason, can be guilted into accepting his proffered drink. He then asks if she was the reason Chang Hee stopped. Hae Joo says that isn’t the case and then Il Moon asks if San made mention of the funding project. When Hae Joo shows ignorance, Il Moon is relieved. Enter San, startling Il Moon. San rubs his ear and says they must have been talking to him behind his back. He then requests Hae Joo accompany him for work. Hae Joo leaves firstly and San mockingly congratulates Il Moon on his and his father’s escape from prosecution.

San and Hae Joo go to the shipyard to check on the progress of the drill ship and San once again exhibits signs of being afraid of heights. This causes Hae Joo to tease him just like when they were kids. And just like when they were kids, he does his best to keep away and fight against her pull to take him to the railing. Such a loveable dork. I do find this inconsistent with earlier actions, because we have seen him on other heights where he didn’t seem all that fazed by it. This cute moment is soon ruined by Hae Joo bringing up In Hwa. San soon quickly becomes upset. Hae Joo shouldn’t feel poorly towards In Hwa as it has nothing to do with her. These are his feelings that try as he might, he can’t change. He likes her. That doesn’t mean he’ll pursue her or ask her to marry him or to leave Chang Hee. Since it’s his own feelings and since he knows where Hae Joo stands, he won’t force the matter so just leave him be.

When Hae Joo again announces that she is quitting learning from him thanks to In Hwa, San completely loses it…well…not in the totally angry screaming manner…just…he gives Hae Joo a much needed lecture that she proceeds to ignore, fully proving her worthy of Chang Hee since the two are both idiots. San calls Hae Joo weak and tells her she needs to buck up to pursue her dream instead of giving it up so easily for In Hwa’s sake. Hae Joo really makes me mad when she states that San doesn’t understand the situation or people’s feelings. Hae Joo, throughout ALL of the adult episodes so far is the most clueless and blind to people’s situations and feelings and now she’s accusing San of this. No, San knows. But he also knows that you can’t please everyone and should not give up on your dreams when you’re close to accomplishing them. I think the funny thing is that Hae Joo says she values In Hwa’s friendship. You know…in the child years…it seems more like Hae Joo was humoring the bratty In Hwa versus actually considering her as a true friend. Plus, they haven’t seen each other in fifteen years—her loyalty to In Hwa at her own expense is just ridiculous.

At the Jang house, In Hwa is very unhappy when Geum Hee tells her to give up on San. He’s not going to change his mind. In Hwa says that she can’t forget San—he’s the only one for her. If she could have forgotten him, she wouldn’t have followed him all the way to the US. I get it. San can’t stop how he feels any more than In Hwa can, but at the same time, San is much more mature about it (yes, I know he’s older by 3 years, but that’s not what I mean). San’s love for Hae Joo is selfless. In Hwa’s love for San is completely selfish. She doesn’t care about San’s feelings and even went as far as offering her father’s business to entice him.

San meets with Jung Woo once more and is shocked to learn that Jang was working for the Korean CIA at the time that Hak Soo was murdered in Japan. San immediately believes that Jang had something to do with Hak Soo’s death, but Jung Woo says that eye witness accounts at the scene have Jang trying hard to save Hak Soo, so it’s not possible. San, however, doesn’t look convinced. San then brings up his father’s name. Jung Woo says that he had heard of him, but never met him. This makes San sad. I guess he was hoping to hear more about his parents. Can’t say I blame the young man. I am really confused now. At first I thought Kang’s animosity with Jang stemmed from his son’s death, but then with what Jang said, that didn’t seem right. But now we have this new information that San’s parents were in Japan at the same time Hak Soo and Jang was. Coincidence that the Kangs and Hak Soo ended up dead? I think not. We then cut to Jang looking at his map and then taking out the film canister that he killed Hak Soo for. We’re closing in, but since there’s 16 more episodes, there’s still a long way to go.

Il Moon proves he’s smarter than he acts. How so? He takes Geum Hee’s hair and the cup Hae Joo drank out of and has a DNA test run. I am shocked that no one else thought of this. Well…15 years ago…that might not have been so easily done as that would put it in the 80s…but since we’re in this day and age, why didn’t Geum Hee insist on a DNA test? Meanwhile, Hae Joo is trying hard to get in touch with Chang Hee who won’t answer any of her calls or texts. She tells him she misses him so much that she dreams of him. Hard to believe at times.

Where is Chang Hee? He’s home drinking. His father has the gall to tell him to buck up and he’ll find his happiness soon. Chang Hee reminds his father that Hae Joo is his lighthouse. Without her, Chang Hee can never be happy. In fact, he will now become a demon worse than his father and worse than Jang. Hearing this frightens Gi Chul. And then Chang Hee delivers a fateful blow to a parent—”you ruined my life.” If we look at it, yes, Gi Chul did ruin his life by covering up Hak Soo’s death and becoming Jang’s dog. But it was kind of Chang Hee who put the final nail in his own happiness’s coffin. Chang Hee then goes to his room where he listens to Hae Joo’s message about missing him and taking time off to go on a vacation with him like he wanted and just cries.

In Hwa goes to head out and notices Chang Hee’s car is back. She barges into the Park house and immediately goes to his room. Gi Chul looks absolutely thrilled about this. Just earlier your son was drinking, telling you that your ruined his life, and that he’s essentially going to be a souless demon and you have the nerve to smile happily at In Hwa’s arrival? You sick, sick, sick man. In Hwa then berates Chang Hee for letting his father’s disapproval get in the way of his marriage. She basically order him to marry Hae Joo. I love how shocked she was when Chang Hee snaps at her. Of course, she is completely a stranger to what has just passed, but still. She then goes out and tells Gi Chul to let Chang Hee marry Hae Joo because she will NEVER marry Chang Hee who is not good enough for her. Ouch. But again we have Gi Chul’s gleeful smile.

Since San really knows Hae Joo’s personality well, he makes a bold mood to ensure she continues her studies with him. He brings tons of gifts and visits her family where he explains he tutors Hae Joo and she hasn’t been coming to his apartment like she’s supposed to. This floors the Chun family and Dal Soon has Jin Joo go and call her sister. Needless to say, Dal Soon and Sang Tae quickly warm up when they learn San is a wealthy young man. Dal Soon is already shipping him with her daughter. Priceless.

While San sits in Hae Joo’s room being stared at by her family, Bong Hee meets with Jung Woo. She thinks its about him reconsidering her, but its not. He wants her to deliver a message to Jang that he’s not letting the older man go. Jung Woo goes to leave, but Bong Hee stops him and demands the truth. He’s known her for too long to keep her in the dark. What exactly did her brother-in-law do? Hae Joo then comes home and Dal Soon tells her to go for San since he’s better than Chang Hee. LOL.

At the Jang house, Bong Hee storms in and immediately grabs Il Moon and curses at him for what he’s done. Of course, her brother-in-law is no better. Jang tries to keep her calm and tell her business is discussed in the office and not at home. Of course, he wishes to keep his evil deeds from his wife. Geum Hee is startled—just what is wrong. Bong Hee then lays down Jang’s list of sins that Jung Woo told her about. She then warns Jang that she and Jung Woo will work together to set things right. Meanwhile the angry Hae Joo calls San and tells him she won’t change her mind so don’t do what he did again. Well…that plan failed.

The next day Il Moon gets the DNA results back and seems totally stunned to learn that Hae Joo is really Geum Hee’s daughter. San comes in and Il Moon jumps and quickly hides the paper. This surprises San. But he quickly cuts to the chase—Il Moon needs to transfer Hae Joo so she is under San’s sole supervision. LOL. I like that he won’t let Hae Joo give up her dream. At the same time, Hae Joo learns from Jung Woo that Chang Hee resigned and cut off all contact. She goes to search him out and Chang Hee tells her that they should break up. End episode.

What a lovely cycle of misery. How long will this continue? Will Hae Joo have a believable romance start with San? Who the heck knows.

9 comments

I love your recaps! LOLOL! Mr lifeless zombie!
I really hate how Hae Joo isn’t confident as she used to be! She lets people walk all over her.. Either Hae Joo finally cracked from all the family issues or the writers messed up on writing her character..

Thank you, Daisy!
I know, I am upset by how much Hae Joo has changed. She used to stand up for herself and not care about the difference between being wealthy and poor. Sure those 15 years between the time jump were probably harsh and she had a hard time, but was it really enough to change her so drastically (unless she’s with Il Moon or San?). I don’t know. I think the writers might have messed up the adult version. The young Hae Joo did receive help, but needed no one to rescue her. In fact, she was always the one who saved Chang Hee 😛 So why the change? Wae?

Thank you so much for all the hard work you’ve done on these recaps. Truly, I only decided to watch this for a few characters and found myself enjoying the first part (younger actors/actresses). Now, though, at this point…I don’t know if I can keep watching it. The sheer stupidity of some of these characters and the situations just makes me want to bang my head against a wall. I know that there’s still plenty more episodes, so there’s definitely still a chance it can get better. I think for now, I’ll just read your recaps and see what happens.

You’re most welcome, Yin.
I picked up this series for my love of Jae Hee and Kim Jae Won and was also totally won over by the younger cast. I also have to agree with frustrations on some of the idiocy being displayed by the adult cast, but its getting hard to find some drama that isn’t frustrating in some respect. I’m just hoping for an ending that doesn’t kill the entire series for me as some dramas have done.

Thank you for the recaps, it must be frustrating to spend so much time and effort writing up episodes that were disappointing (I couldn’t do it!), just know that there are people out there who appreciate your work:)
I feel like the last few eps, including the most recent ones, have just been going round and round in circles and it’s wearing me out. Someone get me a Big Bang oxygen mask, this show is losing me.

You’re welcome. It is frustrating work and sometimes that means recaps are delayed until I get a little less frustrated. I’ve also been prone to whining about not liking a series or certain episodes (you can really see this in my Bachelor Vegetable Store recaps :P). I’ve even dropped series out of sheer frustration of plot and storyline. Although, that’s not why I’ve dropped ALL the series I have.
The problem with longer dramas is they really do have a tendency to be cyclic, redundant, and stretch out certain parts of the plot for much longer than necessary. That’s one of the most frustrating things about weekend and daily dramas. To me, even though you do have all those episodes to fill, you can be more creative and constructive with plot instead of hovering around several pieces of plot and NEVER really addressing them until you hit the end and get that rushed ending BS that really is a problem with many Korean dramas.
Even if this show loses you, please feel free to stop by and say hi here any time 🙂